Legislative leaders say Virginia State Police pay a priority

Sarah Rankin, Associated Press

Updated 6:33 pm, Thursday, December 1, 2016

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Increasing salaries and reducing staffing shortages among Virginia State Police will be a priority in the upcoming legislative session despite a state budget shortfall, leaders from both parties said Thursday.

The state is facing an estimated $1.5 billion gap due to lower-than-expected income and sales tax collections, which prompted Gov. Terry McAuliffe over the summer to scrap planned raises for state employees. The head of the State Police has said that since that time, departures have escalated, leaving the troopers with unsustainable workloads amid a severe manpower shortage.

"It is a major problem, and we need to deal with it. We need to pay these people," said Senate Minority Leader Richard Saslaw, a Democrat from Fairfax County.

Saslaw, who spoke at a forum in Richmond on legislative issues hosted by the Virginia Press Association, said he felt sure the legislature will take up the issue on its return in January.

Sen. William Stanley, R-Franklin County, also said public safety will be a priority.

Local sheriff's departments in his district that covers southwest and Southside Virginia are having a hard time recruiting "the best and the brightest" because the pay is so low, said Stanley, the majority whip. He cited the case of one sheriff in his district who qualifies for public assistance and another who left his job to drive a log truck for better pay.

Leaders in the House of Delegates also have said they're committed to restoring cuts to the State Police. Appropriations Chairman S. Chris Jones, R-Suffolk, has called it his committee's primary focus.

Asked how president-elect Donald Trump's administration could impact the state's budget, both senators said Thursday that Virginia could see new jobs and economic development.

Trump's promise of greater military spending could benefit northern Virginia and the Norfolk area, Saslaw said, though the benefits wouldn't be immediate.

"We think about Interstate 73," Stanley said, referring to the proposed highway segment between the Virginia-North Carolina line and Interstate 81. "We think about bringing back jobs in manufacturing."

On the possibility of Medicaid expansion, Stanley called the issue "dead" under Trump, who has promised to repeal and replace President Barack Obama's Affordable Care Act.

Saslaw, meanwhile, said Medicaid expansion seems to be in a "more precarious situation" than it was before the election.

"But that's never deterred the General Assembly," he said. "So will there be a debate? Possibly."